Monarchy of China in the context of "Chinese sovereign"

The 1911 Revolution, also known as the Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, ended China's last imperial dynasty, the Qing dynasty, and led to the establishment of the Republic of China (ROC). The revolution was the culmination of a decade of agitation, revolts, and uprisings. Its success marked the collapse of the Chinese monarchy, the end of over two millennia of imperial rule in China and the 267-year reign of the Qing, and the beginning of China's early republican era.

The Qing had long struggled to reform the government and resist foreign aggression, but conservatives in the Qing court opposed the program of reforms after 1900 as too radical and reformers considered it too slow. Several factions, including underground anti-Qing groups, revolutionaries in exile, reformers who wanted to save the monarchy by modernizing it, and activists across the country debated how or whether to overthrow the Qing dynasty. The flashpoint came on 10 October 1911 with the Wuchang Uprising, an armed rebellion by members of the New Army. Similar revolts then broke out spontaneously around the country, and revolutionaries in every province renounced the Qing dynasty. On 1 November 1911, the Qing court appointed Yuan Shikai (leader of the Beiyang Army) as prime minister, and he began negotiations with the revolutionaries.

The Chinese sovereign was the ruler of a particular monarchical regime in the historical periods of ancient China and imperial China. Sovereigns ruling the same regime, and descended from the same paternal line, constituted a dynasty. Several titles and naming schemes have been used throughout Chinese history.

The Empire of China, also known in historiography as the Hongxian Monarchy (Chinese: 洪憲帝制), was a short-lived attempt by Chinese president Yuan Shikai from late 1915 to early 1916 to reinstate the monarchy in China, with himself as emperor. The attempt ultimately failed, set back the republican cause by several years, and led China into a period of fracture and conflict among various local warlords.

The Chinese monarchy had various methods to determine succession to the Chinese throne before the institution was overthrown in 1911. The Mongol-led Yuan dynasty practiced blood tanistry, or competition among brothers, while the Ming dynasty favored primogeniture, with an emperor succeeded by his eldest son. During the Manchu-led Qing dynasty, an emperor would write an edict to select one of his sons in secret. An emperor could have numerous sons by women of various ranks, so the heir might not be obvious until it was announced.

In general, Chinese succession can be classified as postmortem and father-to-son. The emperor selected a successor from among his sons. There was a strong preference for the eldest son of the empress. If the emperor did not have a son, he could adopt, usually from a relative of the same clan. The realm was never divided among heirs. Sisters and daughters were not factors in the succession process. Empress dowagers often served as king makers, and sometimes ruled in their own right without claiming monarchical title. Abdication was possible, but rare.

The Manchu Restoration or Dingsi Restoration (Chinese: 丁巳復辟), also known as Zhang Xun Restoration (simplified Chinese: 张勋复辟; traditional Chinese: 張勳復辟), or Xuantong Restoration (simplified Chinese: 宣统复辟; traditional Chinese: 宣統復辟), was an attempt to restore the Chinese monarchy by General Zhang Xun, whose army seized Beijing and briefly reinstalled the last emperor of the Qing dynasty, Puyi, to the throne. The restoration lasted just less than two weeks, from July 1 to July 12, 1917, and was quickly reversed by Republican troops. Despite the uprising's popular name ("Manchu Restoration"), almost all putschists were ethnic Han.